Watertown republican. [volume] (Watertown, Wis.) 1860-1906, 1887-10-19
THE HOOK AND LADDER AWARD.

To the Honorable The Board Of Control OF Firemen's
Tournament held at WdtertOlUn Wts., September
Dist 1897 under the auspices of the Central Wis
coRsin agricultural and Mechanical association
GENTLEMEN:-Your committee of arbitration
appointed Ito arbitrate between the Fort Akin
son and Jefferson Hook and Ladder companies,
and TO decide which of the two companies won
the first prize and award the prizes, first to such
company which made best time. as proven to
them, and second prize to the company making
second best time proven to them" has de-
cided said matters and begs leave to report as
follows:
Your committee, notice of the time and place
of meeting having previously been given to the
companies Interested, met on the 10th day of
October. 1887 at the city of Watertown, Wiscon-
sin, at 3 o'clock P NJ, tor the purpose of taking
testimony and hearing the arguments in behalf
of said companies
The Fort Atkinson company appeared by Col.
Burchard, of Fort Atkinson, its attorney, and
for the jefferson company r. B. Kirkland, of
Jefferson, submitted written brief together
with atfidavits of Adam Schenk Samuel Brown
Zone of the time-keepers) and r. B. Kirkland,
and letters from James A. Sheridan, j. G. Sea-
man, H. Tointon, and I. M. Cullen written to
said R. B. Kirkland in reply to requests by him
for information relative to said Hook and Lad
der contest
There were at said contest three duly appoint
ed time-keepers Joseph Harvey, James Mccall
and Samuel Brown whose duty it was, APP
pears from the rules submitted to this committee
to take the true time from the flash of the gum"
and each time-keeper should set down the time
before consulting with other time-keeperS, and
in case they should disagree all of the times
should be added together and divided by three
"tO get the average time which should be the
time on which awards should be made if not
otherwise ordered by the Board of Control.
From the evidence adduced it appears to this
committee that the time-keepers in several in
stances did not fully comply with said rules,
and that in the case under consideration time
keepers Harvey and Mccall undertook to decide
the matter without tmekeeper Brown whose
4loo ole I1n nd Dob
the time of stranger instead, who happened to
be in the judges stand, as appears from the
affidavit of said Brown,
It is not within the power nor material for this
committee to pass upon the reliability of Browns
watch, nor to say, what in case Browns watch
was really unfit for use, the time keepers ought
to have done; but it appears from outside EVIL
dence, Independent of the time-keeperS, that
Mr.. Browns time upon said race correspondent
exactly with the time taken by one Adam
Schenk. and varied from the time taken by one
M. Cullen and person whose name is not
known and who is referred to by one H. Tointon,
all of whom held stop. watches on the lace, not
more than a second. This goes to show that
Browns watch, at least upon this race, may
have been correct. Now granting for argu-
ments' sake that Browns time was indeed
wrong and had to be disregarded, the
time-keepers had no authority to take a
strangers time instead of Browns, but admit
ting further for arguments sake, that they ha
and that the time alleged by the timekeepers wa
as follows: Harvey's time 4134 seconds, tn
strangers time 1914 SECONDS anu MI. McCdI1
time "A seconds. drown testifying that Harve
had told him his Harvey's time, corresponds
with the stranger s. the sum total of this woul
be 1919 seconds. which divided by three for OF
fetal time would give exactly 4212 seconds, an
not 40 seconds as reported for the Fl Atkinson
company What has become of that second
In the opinion of this committee that stranger
time must be disregarded, and the time of all tn
timekeepers taken together, which would b.
Brown Al seconds, Mccall d seconds and Harve
413I seconds mean time 1921 seconds which di
viGed by three would give official time to tn
Fl Atkinson company AN seconds, must prevail
or the time of Harvey, 41A seconds, and the tim
of Mccall, Al seconds must be taken disregarding
Browns time. and computed on the same prln
ciple as if all the timekeepers had caught tn
time dividing by two instead of three, which
would make the time for the Fl Atkinson com
many as follows: Harvey 41M seconds, Mccall
IA seconds added together S534 seconds and Oil
vided by two making 424 seconds
It seems to be conceded that the time of thu
Jefferson company is 421a seconds, no protest t
that having been entered, nor any objections t.
the same having been raised before this commit
tee.
dence adduced and after careful consideration O
the same YOUR committee feels compelled IN JUS
tice to all parties concerned, to decide tnat III
Rescue Hook and Ladder Company of Jefferson
WISCONSIN, is entitled to the first prize, in tn
above mentioned contest, and the same is hereb
awarded to said company, and that the tt. Al
kinson Hook and Ladder Company is entitled
the second prize in the above mentioned contest
and that the same is hereby awarded to said com
pany. olSiTGu1
JAMES w MOORE, Commute
W. c. STONE
Dated at WATERFOWL Wis. this 18th day OF DC
tODer, 1851